Locking sliding seat



Feb. 23, 1943. R. A. CRAMER ETAL 2,312,030

LOCKING SLIDING SEAT Fild May 22. 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 A Jib m 12A. C'ramer dfrar/zer' Q QUMM E I Feb. 23, 1943. CRAMER ETAL 2,312,030

' LOCKING SLIDING SEAT Filed May 22, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Imbentors fiALramer- J. F 67 077267" (Ittornegs Patented Feb. 23, 1943 LOCKING SLIDING SEAT Roy A. Cramer and Jesse F. Cramcr, Kansas City, Mo.

Application May 22-, 1939, 'Serial N 0. 274,879 1 Claim. (01. 155-122) This invention relates to chairs and more particularly to the seats thereof, mounted on standards which are preferably vertically adjustable on suitable supports. Our prime object is to provide a seat which, under body thrust of the occupant, may be caused to freely slide or move forwardly or rearwardly relative to the immovable support or pedestal, but which cannot he accidentally detached from the latter or have tilting movement thereon, and which, in its preferred form, will gravitate rearwardly unless restrained. A chair of this type is peculiarly suitable for use by radio operators who usually work in cramped quarters and must be ready to instantly shift their position from one piece of apparatusv to another, as when thev operator occupies a position before desks or tables arranged in angular relation to each. other.

A further object of the invention is to provide a seat having a swivel relation to the standard and means to lock the seat at different points in its swivel adjustment, within conven ient reach of the occupant of the chair.

With the general objects named in view and others as will hereinafter appear, the invention consists in certain novel and useful features of construction and organization of parts as hereinafter described and claimed; and in order that it may be fully understood, reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a front view of a chair embodying the invention.

Figure 2 is a, side elevation of the chair.

Figure 3 is a section on the line IIIIII of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken on the line IVIV of Figure 1, but omitting the seat cushion and certain latch mechanisms.

Figure 5 is an enlarged top plan view with the entire seat omitted, but contoured by dotted lines.

Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary front view of the chair with the front face of the seat cushion broken away.

Figure 7 is a substantially full size fragmentary vertical section of the seat plate, and the base and certain other parts, the section being on the line VII-VII of Figure 3.

Figure 8 is a detail fragmentary perspective view of the seat-supporting base, the rollers and the tracks for the rollers.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, I indicates a support or pedestal of the immovable or fixed type, and 2 a standard vertically adjustmovement on the standard 2.

against rotation by a screw 200 standard it is formed with a series of spaced sockets 20 for cooperative engagement, by a retractible locking pin 2d carried by the support I. The standard, above the support, may be formed with an integral circular plate or flange 3 having peripheral notches 4 for a purpose hereinafter explained.

Swivelled on and supported by the standard 2, is a seat support comprising a sleeve 5 having a flaring or funnel-shaped upper end or base 6 which may be of rectangular contour and much greater. area than the diameter of the sleeve, but in any event, a pair of its opposite marginal edges terminate in out-turned horizontal side flanges 1 in, coplanar relation and preferably in- ,clined in one direction, and surmounted by parallel tracks or guideways 8 having upturned end stop lugs 9 and intermediate stop lugs or ribs ID. The sleeve 5 of the seat support is also provided externally with vertically alined upper and lower pairs of guide lugs II and I2, and pivoted at l3 to and between lugs II is a bell crank lever lock I4, the lower arm of which is adapted to normally fit between lugs l2 and within one of the notches 4 of the plate 3 to lock the seat support 5 against turning or swivel The upper arm of the lock extends upwardly and outwardly from the pivotal point I3, and a spring l5 holds the lower arm between lugs l2 and interlocked with the locking flange 3. To unlock the latch and permit of rotation of the seat support on the standard 2, the upper arm or handle of the lock is pressed or pulled upwardly, and when released, the lock is automatically ready to enter the next flange notch 4, with which it is brought into registration. The lower arm has a manually operable screw l6 whose end by thrusting against sleeve 5 of the seat support, will retain the locking end of the latch beyond the periphery of flange 3 so that the seat support may freely rotate.

The seat may comprise a cushion ll of any suitable type, secured on and around a steel or equivalent plate l8 and extending from front to rear, and rigidly secured to and depending from said plate is a pair of angle bars I9 provided at their lower margins with inturned or facing flanges 20 which underlie the side flanges 'l of the seat support 6, and prevent the seat from being lifted off the base. Between and parallel with the angle bars I9 is a second pair of angle engaging a groove 2b in the standard. To vertically adjust the the stops for'each roller 2 bars 2| each of which is spaced from one of the bars 19 a distance approximating the width of the flanges l of the seat support, and fitting between each pair of the proximate bars 19 and 2|, and resting upon the tracks 8 between the lugs 9 and the ribs I0, thereof, are rollers 22, which rollers likewise engage and form an anti-friction support for the plate of the seat. The plate has depending stops 23 vertically over the tracks I, being spaced apart a that between the lugs With the arrangement distance corresponding to and ribs of the tracks I.

' described, the seat can move a distance substan tiall twice the travel of the rollers in theqsame direction, the a proached lugs 9 and rib l arresting the travel of the rollers, and the latter, in turn, arresting the travel of the seat through the abutment of the stops 23 against the rollers, it being noted in this connection that the seat at all times is incapable of tilting and hence retains its parallel relationship to the racewayof the. rollers. It will also be noted that the seat unless restrained will tend to gravitate down the inclined planeiormed-by the tracks 8;

Securedto the underside. of the seat support near andparall'elwithone sidemargin thereof, is a plate .24 terminating in a re'b'ent or .hook upper edge 25 formed witha series of notches 26-. A

latch 21;. pivoted to and between the arms of bracket 28 secured to the adjacent angle bar 19, is. adapted for engagement with any of the notches 26 to lock the seat against forward or backward travel, the handle end of the latch be inglwithin convenient reach of the seat occupant, who can therefore easily trip the latch preliminary to .shiftingthe seatiorwardly or rearwardly. The latch, when released, relocks the seat by snapping into the first notch 26 encountered under the force applied by a spring 29 reacting against the bracket 28; By preference the lock 21 and the lock-M are on opposite sides of the seat" and closely underlie the same.

Secured toplate 30 provided at opposite sides of the seat with sts.- 3|- to which a safety strap not shown, is adapted to be attached for securing; the occupant to thechair. These are desirable where the chair is installed on air and water craft.

standing arm of a substantially right angle shaped back support 32, said back rest being adjustable by the device 3|a shown in detail in our Patent No. 2,054,557, September 15, 1936. The lower or horizontal arm of the back support extends forwardly under plate H! of the seat through a pair of spaced transverse bars 33 and 34, secured to and depending from said plate IS. The back support 32 also rests upon a rearwardly projecting lug 35 of bar 33, and has a series of holes 33 for engagement by alocking pin 31 mounted in a sleeve 38 depending from the lug 32. The pin is normally spring-advanced for engagement with any of the holes 35, but as it is of conventional type its particular construction is neither shown nor described. By pulling it downward, the spring bracket is free for adjustment to dispose the back support to suit a particular occupant.

From thenabove description it will be apparent that we have produced a construction embodying all vofthefeatures-of advantage set'forth as desirable and while we have described and illustrated the preferred embodiment, we reserve the right to. all changes within the spirit of the invention and without the ambit of the prior art.

"Weclaim:

A chair comprising a vertically extending support, ,a pair of spaced parallel coplanar tracks carried .by the upper end of the support, a seat having bearing-ways for cooperative load-carrying association with the tracks and adapted for back andforth travel in relation to said tracks,

a pair of spaced free rollers inserted between each of the tracks and-bearingi-ways, means projecting upwardly from the central portion of each track and interposed between. the rollers of each track to limit-movement of therollers in oppositedirections, means projecting. upwardly from the opposite ends'of the tracks for limiting movements of the rollers in other opposite direcc tions, a plurality of spaced elements projecting Us a pair of anglebrackets ofany suitable type may be mounted on the updownwardly from the bearing-ways and adapted to abut the rollers when the latter reach their limits of movements in said opposite directions for. positively limiting movement of the seat in opposite directions, and'separate means forlocking the seat in selected position along said tracks.

7 ROY A. CRAMER.

JESSE F. CRAMER. 

